Dear Editor,
I write to raise a few points that must be raised on the question of how someone who was sanctioned multiple times ended up as a corruption investigator at the Special Organised Crimes Unit.
The person I refer to is Navin Sankar.
Under the presidency of Bharrat Jagdeo, Navin Sankar was removed as a Customs Officer at the Guyana Revenue Authority.
Under the presidency of Donald Ramotar he was rehired. Soon after, in 2014, he was implicated in an alleged re-migrant duty-free concession scam, involving the publisher of the Kaieteur News, Glen Lall. Media reports said that the address listed on the registration forms for both of the vehicles is Lot 8 Continental Park, East Bank Demerara, which was Navin Sankar’s residence at the time and his parents, re-migrants from Berbice, were listed as the owners of the vehicles. However, both vehicles were being used by Glenn Lall and his wife. It was Stabroek News on February 8, 2015, which reported that: “The details of the ‘compensation’ package accepted by the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) to drop a highly-publicised multi-million dollar tax evasion case against Glenn Lall, his wife Bhena and a re-migrant couple are being shrouded in secrecy.”
Under the presidency of David Granger, Navin Sankar was again removed from the Guyana Revenue Authority in June 2016.
Now Navin Sankar has re-emerged, this time as an investigator with the Special Organised Crimes Unit. Editor, I must also note that no one could have missed Navin Sankar’s luxury vehicle parked at the Special Organised Crimes Unit’s office. Given that the vehicle is worth over $20M you cannot help but raise questions.
Having said all this how is it that a person with such a record is now involved in investigating allegations of corruption; allegations, mind you, that look more and more like political targeting each day.
Until this question is answered, it would seem that Glenn Lall’s ‘man of business’ is back in business.
Yours faithfully,
Cedric Lord
